


What's Your Name?

by Kermit_ko



Category: Clone High
Genre: M/M, Nicknames, Teen and up for implied sexual content, it's one sentence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:41:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26810836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kermit_ko/pseuds/Kermit_ko
Summary: JFK gives a lot of nicknames, and Ponce is very sentimental
Relationships: JFK/Ponce "Poncey" de León (Clone High)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 165





	What's Your Name?

**Author's Note:**

> This is the longest fanfic I've ever written and I still don't feel great about it whoops
> 
> This is completely self indulgent, there's nothing better to me than nicknames. Someone really thought of something and associates it with you so much that it becomes a part of you?? Iconic
> 
> I mostly just write for fun but I'm definitely down for some criticism!

When it came to nicknames, Ponce practically hoarded them.

JFK was so good at giving them out, he could pretty much call his friend anything and effectively get his attention. There were simple nicknames he went by like 'Poncie' and 'Ponce-O' that were free game for anyone to call him, but along with those came the nicknames JFK had claimed only he could use, with most of them being on a spectrum between sentimental and stupid.

'Alligator' was a newer nickname, one that caught on after a history lesson on the real Ponce De Leon. After finding out the explorer was trying to find the fountain of youth in Florida, Jack had a ball reading out Florida news headlines to Ponce and insisting every one was about him. Something about picturing the chill greaser calling the police to escort him to a strip club had both teens losing their minds. The two were both out of breath laughing by the time Jack had gotten distracted by something else, and the next day he found himself being referred to as a reptile from their state of comedic gold. It still managed to make the greaser crack a smile, not as much because the joke was still funny, but because of who put in the thought to say it.

'Strawberry' was a weird one, yet it always got a strong reaction from Ponce. JFK started that one after a summer road trip in junior year. The pair had both compromised that whoever's turn it was to drive also got to control the radio, meaning that for 6 hours, the boys were blasting Ponce's driving playlist. After a steady stream of loud rock and roll, a soft tune rolled in with drums soon accompanying it. Ponce was caught off guard, however JFK seemed more interested than insulting.

"Fuck, sorry to kill the mood Jackie. You can skip this one, I don't know how this slipped on here.." While Ponce was going on with excuses for his music, JFK suddenly flicked him on the nose to shut him up.

"Aww shut it Pon Pon, I ,er, uh, really like this song. Reminds me of you." Jack said, and with that all of Ponce's worries went away. With a quick glance, Jack was able to get enough detail of his friend to find a way under his skin. "With all that uh blush on your face, you're basically a strawberry, Strawberry. Push you in a field down a hill sometime." Ponce never got to listen to Strawberry Fields Forever without thinking of JFK after that, all because of his best friend's stupid van, and his stupid jokes, and his stupid cute face.

'Little Dipper' was old and sentimental, and Ponce could count on both hands how many times he had heard the nickname. It was infrequent, yet whenever the name popped up it was memorable. Ponce could still remember clearly the night it started.

Not everyone knew about JFK's love for space, and it was almost shocking how well the jock kept his passion a secret considering his loud nature. Ponce had known about it since elementary school, back when Jack didn't care as much about holding a reputation and decided he could let himself be more emotionally available. Some days during recess, the best friends would skip out on meeting in the playground and instead hide out in the library, playing around on the computers and trying to find any terrible sites the school hadn't thought to ban. On days the two weren't looking to make the IT department miserable, Jack would take Ponce on a virtual trip to the stars, lecturing his friend on the constellations and planets and the moons in their solar system. Few things stuck with Ponce, and he never had the same spark for the cosmos as his pal, but he would never want to say anything to shut Jack down.

Throughout high school, JFK only fell deeper into his interest, and actually began to build a life plans around it. Ponce was proud to see his best friend building up his dream, and it meant a lot to him to be one of the few people Jack shared his dreams with. Wally and Carl were always supportive and listened to their foster son's information dumps, and Cleo was often forced to listen to JFK's ramblings. She often tuned out her sometimes boyfriend's passionate monologues, and even resorted to pushing him onto Ponce, who she knew would listen. It was something special between the two of them and they both knew it, JFK just felt happy to have someone seem genuinely interested in his love.

One Friday night, Jack had read on some forum page that shooting stars would be visible just out of Exclamation, leading to him screaming over the phone at Ponce to pack a bag and go out with him for the night to watch the show. Ponce didn't have to be told twice, and was ready to be picked up as soon as JFK came pounding at the door. Glen had no idea about the boys' plan until Ponce was trying to spit out the words while JFK dragged him out to his van. As soon as Ponce had the door closed, JFK shot out of the driveway like he'd die if he stayed. Ponce was quick ask what the hurry was, which seemed to bring his friend down enough for him to explain he was just excited. The pair had to stop by Jack's home before taking off out of town, something about Jack wanting to bring his camera along and accidentally leaving behind his film. 

Being seated in the kitchen was the first calm moment the explorer's clone had gotten since he was told of the plans, and he hoped to enjoy it, knowing it would probably be a loud trip after. Wally made small talk with the teen while his son trashed his room trying to grab his last minute equipment. Eventually, Jack came down quickly with a different camera in his hand, a few blankets off his bed, and his scarf all tossed over his shoulder.

"Alright foster dads, we'll be back uh, tomorrow!" He said, buzzing with excitement. Wally seemed happy over his son's mood, but was completely in the dark about Jack's night plans.

"Baby, where did you say you were going again?" Wally asked in his typical kind parental tone. At some point Carl had entered the room, staring down his son as he waited to get an answer. Jack didn't seem like he'd try to hide anything, especially under Carl's intimidating gaze. His foster dads were too good at good cop bad cop. "I'm taking Little Dipper over there to see the shooting stars!" He grinned, and suddenly Ponce felt everything get ten degrees hotter. The greaser stood up quickly and cleared his throat, reaching for his best friend's sleeve and pulling him to the door.

"Yeah, we should hurry though so we don't miss anything, right Jackie Boy?" Ponce asked, trying to escape the situation with the amount of attention drawn to himself. Knowing the house he was in though and the company he was pulling on, that would of course never happen. 

"Whatever you say Strawberry!" Jack smiled, and poked Ponce's reddened cheek as he stepped out to the van. 

Ponce didn't forget that night, for everything about it had managed to imprint into his mind. The beauty of the stars painting the night sky with their shimmering trails, the way Jack's eyes lit up every time a new flicker of light appeared, how utterly soft and completely vulnerable the other teen seemed and how comfortable he had looked embracing his love, or how the butterflies in his stomach felt after being called such a personal nickname.

"Ponce?"

Hearing his name immediately made the greaser worry. Jack never used his name unless something was horribly wrong, and even then it was still uncommon to hear. Ponce was never just Ponce, always Poncie, Ponce-O, Pon Pon, Alligator, Strawberry, Pepper, Froggy, Sunshine, even Little Dipper came before his real name. Ponce was almost scared to hear what his friend had to say in the situation.

"What's up Jack?" Ponce asked, keeping an even tone. If he let Jack know he was worried while his friend was already frazzled, he knew it would be a disaster.

"You gotta meet me at uh, Teen Sex Cove, now." JFK's voice was high, already making his distress clear. Ponce didn't have to ask any questions to be on board. He hopped up from his bed and was already on his way out the door, slipping on his shoes while he sandwiched his phone between his shoulder and his ear.

"Yeah, alright, I'll be there soon. What ha-"

Of course JFK would hang up as soon as he heard what he wanted.

Ponce figured it would happen, after so many years of friendship he could predict JFK's actions. It was something he really enjoyed about the clone. Though he could be somewhat predictable if you knew his patterns, JFK always found a way to be spontaneous. His best friend was never uninteresting, and it made every day with him feel more and more special. In his heart, Ponce knew what he felt. Without letting his pining thoughts cloud his focus any more, the explorer's clone grabbed his keys and went to the kitchen. He scribbled out a note and hung it on the fridge for his father before taking off to his motorcycle, leaving for the cove.

As Ponce drove down the dark roads getting closer and closer to his destination, he could have sworn he saw someone familiar up the road. He continued to ride, slowing down as he approached the mysterious person.

"Cleo? What's got you out so late? And so far out?" The greaser asked, finally coming to a stop on the side of the road infront of his classmate.

Cleopatra looked upset, her face conveying a complex mix of hurt, frustration, sadness, and the raw bitter angst only a scorned teen knew. "Oh Poncie, you know him better than anyone," had she been crying? Everything about the situation was putting Ponce off more and more. "Why is JFK such a jerk? You think you know a guy, and then he starts freaking out about guys and tv shows! He doesn't make any sense!"

Unsure of what to say, Ponce reached out and gently rested a hand on her shoulder. "Damn Cleo, I'm sorry for anything he pulled tonight. Do you need a ride home or something?" He asked, only to be answered with a silent head shake.

"No thanks Ponce, I need to do some thinking. Maybe with Abe if he's up." With no goodbyes, Cleo started walking again, her flame of anger slightly subdued from the kindness of her fellow clone. Ponce felt more concern than before, continuing his drive with his stomach in knots.

JFK's car was parked out in a lonely corner, between the trees and out of sight from the other drivers. Ponce parked his bike beside the vehicle, and knocked on the window to let his friend know he was there. After a few seconds the door popped open, giving Ponce his cue to enter.

JFK had his knees pulled tight to his chest, and he was staring distantly out the windshield. Ponce sat beside him in the passenger seat, not daring to make the fist move. Jack was never known for quietness, so the moments he shut up were fairly unpredictable, even for his best friend.

"Ponce." Jack finally spoke up after minutes in silence. "Have you ever watched Will and Grace?"

Ponce could have never seen that coming. His eyes opened wide in surprise, one part over the question itself, and another on the implications.

"Like, Will and Grace the ga-"

"Yes." Jack groaned, cutting off his best friend before he could finish. Everyone knew it was the gay show, but Jack didn't need to hear it from everyone. "I was, eh... I was watching it with my foster dads after that, uh, John Dark, joined the basketball team."

"That was just Joan of Arc though, why'd that swing you to the show?" Ponce was cautious with his words, not wanting to overstep and frighten JFK into a corner. Getting Jack this talkative about his feelings was an incredible accomplishment that he planned to get everything he could out of. After another brief silence let the president clone find his words.

"Just- I dunno Poncie. Uh, I, uh... I guess I ,er, uh, always had kind of an interest in it..." JFK was fumbling, and Ponce's silence didn't make him feel any better. He stared at the fellow clone, heat rising to his face as Ponce looked back, cool as a cucumber. He seemed so smug, being all supportive and nice to him. The audacity. "Fuck Ponce, don't tell me you've never seen an ad for it that didn't look funny to you!"Jack was upset, jumping to defensiveness instantly. Ponce kept his cool, his only thoughts on de-escalating the situation.

"Jack, hey, it's okay." Simple, soft-spoken words were enough to quell the embarrassed rage of the presidential clone, leaving him sitting with his arms crossed in a huff.

"John." Ponce spoke up as soon as Jack seemed settled. "If you really like that show it's alright. You're still my best friend. Nothing like that will ever turn me away, you got that? Now we don't have to talk about it unless you want to- "

"Well I don't want to." Jack interrupted, to which just Ponce shrugged off.

"I get that, I just wanna let you know I'm here for you man." In that moment, JFK's 'feelings are for dames' mentality seemed to go out the window. The jock reached over and pulled Ponce by the shoulders, holding him in a tight embrace. The pair both felt something from the comforting action, one feeling the the crumbling world around him still for a moment with his rock to make him feel safe and cared for, and one feeling everything he ever dreamed of coming true, where he could love freely and openly without a care in the world.

"Jackie." Ponce said, his voice coming up muffled as he spoke into the other teen's sweater.

"Yeah?" JFK asked, pulling away just enough to see his dearest friend's face.

"I fucking love Will and Grace." The greaser admitted without fear. "I bought some seasons on dvd just so I can watch it alone without worrying about getting caught."

It was strange to JFK how fast things could change. One minute you're about to hook up with the hottest girl at school, then a few hours later you wind up at your boyfriend's house to watch a queer sitcom. Ponce's room was dark, only illuminated by the brightness of his small TV and a candle the teen insisted on lighting for 'atmosphere'. His room smelled like cinnamon because of it, and part of JFK thought that the scent was affecting the flavor of the popcorn the two had been sharing. The room was warm, but not uncomfortable, allowing Ponce to drape a blanket over himself and his partner without complaint.

Everything about that moment felt right, Jack had decided, from the eye strain of watching bright lights in a dark room, the slight burnt taste in their snack, and the weight of Ponce's head on his shoulder.

Everything was perfect, and it was all he ever could have wanted from his Little Dipper.


End file.
